MLB is heading back to Iowa during the 2026 season, according to The Athletic’s Matt Gelb and Dan Hayes.
USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported the league has earmarked Thursday, March 26, for Opening Day next year. Among the headline occasions across the season is a Mexico City series between the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Diego Padres and another Field of Dreams game. Per Gelb and Hayes, the Philadelphia Phillies and Minnesota Twins will cross paths for an interleague battle, with Minnesota serving as the home team.
MLB first made the trip to Dyersville, Iowa in 2021 and staged another game there in 2022. The Chicago Cubs’ 4-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds is the last installment.
Considering Field of Dreams was released in 1989, a lot of younger baseball fans simply haven’t seen the film and don’t really have a frame of reference for the eponymous one-off game.
But you don’t need to understand the deeper complexities behind Ray Kinsella building a baseball field in an Iowa cornfield to appreciate the cool visuals the Field of Dreams game creates.
Tim Anderson’s walk-off homer in 2021 was a pitch-perfect way for the inaugural contest to end.
MLB has gone in different directions for similar events the past two years. It traveled to Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama, in 2024 to celebrate the history of the Negro Leagues. Earlier this month, Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee hosted the Speedway Classic.
Once it’s formally announced, the return of the Field of Dreams game is likely to be received positively.